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Bryan Dunmire

Why are you interested in public service and why did you apply to this internship?
Public service is the most direct way to make true change for the people of America. It is taken for granted how lucky we are to live in a country that allows ordinary citizens to serve the public. We should all be taking advantage of this imperative right. I applied for this internship because it gives me the opportunity to gain insight to Congress. I applied specifically to Congressman Dan Lungren’s internship because… well… I though I could actually get this one. These internships are so competitive with such a bright pool of applicants, I choose the one that I thought very few Harvard students would actually apply for… The Republican.

In about two sentences, please describe the main responsibilities of your internship this summer.
Besides the standard but absolutely thrilling intern jobs of answering phone calls and sorting mail, I write letters to constituents on behalf of the Congressman, and summarize testimonies of witnesses in congressional hearings. Recently I’ve begun lobbying other congressional offices on our new bill, which would call for nuclear arms reduction of the USA and Russia.

 What are you working on this week?
This week I summarized testimonies from CEO’s that were introducing their new innovations for disaster relief temporary housing, in order to replace the inadequate tents and trailers used after Katrina. Additionally I began to acquaint myself with the arguments for and against Nuclear Arms Reduction in order to be better prepared when dealing with other congressional offices.

 Have you had any "face time" with the head of the office yet?
Congressman Dan Lungren is, for lack of a more eloquent phrase, the man. He makes the effort to walk through the front doors and talk to all of his staff (and interns) to see how everyone is doing. Also, whenever an intern finishes his or her stint in the office, we have a small party which includes the entire office (and of course, the boss) sitting in the main office drinking root beer floats and telling jokes and stories. Face time has not been a problem with Representative Lungren.

Of the staff at the office, whose job do you think is the most interesting?
I would have to say Kevin Holsclaw, the Legislative Director, has the most interesting job. This man is one of the smartest people I’ve ever met, and he not only knows an exorbitant amount of information about basically every issue, he has a strong opinion about them all. He is the Congressman’s go-to guy for policy decisions and spends his day working the details of legislations, actually effecting change in the world.

Have any really exciting guests/visitors come by the office recently?
Besides Jeff Solnet, Amy Howell and Bill Purcell? Not particularly. Although I have ran into Ron Paul and John Kerry while strolling the halls.

Have you worked on any fun events/projects yet at your job?
This nuclear arms reduction project has been, for obvious reasons, fascinating. Although another task that I have a lot of fun with would be giving tours to constituents. How many people get to pretend to be an expert on rooms that held such bills like the Missouri Compromise (The Old Senate Chamber) or decided the Dred Scott decision (The Old Supreme Court)? These tours, and the reactions of our constituents, continually reminds me of the vast history of the place where I work.

In one sentence or less, tell me something you learned either from or about your job that everyone should know.
I’ve learned that the staff of the Congressmen and Senators are incredibly overqualified and disgustingly underpaid for the important jobs that they do.
 
Have you had an experience during your internship recently that has shown you the importance of politics and public service?
Everyday we are bombarded with phone calls and emails from constituents which range from such emotions like rage to thankfulness. The American public does care about what is happening in Washington because the decisions that are made here affect millions of people at home. The sheer number of people contacting us proves the importance of politics and public service in the United States. Politics is a complicated game but with a bottom line of representing the constituents at home.